​The future of Linkin Park has been unclear since singer Chester Bennington died in July 2017. The band's co-leader and Bennington's vocal foil Mike Shinoda has since given some sporadic updates on what future LP plans could look like, and most substantially, they involved absolutely zero plans for a Bennington hologram at live shows.
But now, there's something even more concrete: three new songs from Shinoda himself and separate from the band, which dropped Thursday (January 25).The songs make up a new EP called Post Traumatic, available right now via Shinoda's website. The first one, "Place to Start," finds Shinoda both rapping and singing on a subdued electronic track, and its accompanying intimate video sees him surrounded by instruments and musical ephemera. Two voicemails from friends seemingly dating back to the time of Bennington's death play the song out.
That song is followed by two other tracks: "Over Again," which recounts the aftermath of Bennington's death and the concert Linkin Park played at the Hollywood Bowl in October, and "Watching As I Fall," which features the lyrics "They're watching as I fall / To somewhere down below / But maybe I'm just falling / To get somewhere they won't." Both have intense videos that appear to be shot by Shinoda himself on a handheld camera inside a home studio.​On Twitter, Shinoda explained some of the impetus behind his new clips. "Grief is so personal, and I thought that a D.I.Y., autobiographical format made the most sense," he wrote about the videos' shaky style. "I wanted to put this out as soon as possible because I’m living it, and a lot of other people are living it, too."Shinoda also said every remaining member of Linkin Park wants to move on as a unit still, but that "it'll take time" to figure out what that looks like.